China has been criticized as the biggest contributor to global warming given its remarkable economic growth in recent years. However, it's not fair.

Calculating carbon dioxide emissions is very complicated, and different organizations like the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the World Resources Institute have different data. Given the condition that there are still no officially and universally recognized calculation standard and methods, there is some uncertainty with the current data on carbon dioxide emissions.

Although China's total dioxide carbon emissions are relatively big, however, the level of emissions per capita in China is much lower than those of the US and European countries.

The developed countries have finished industrialization, and their carbon dioxide emissions have already passed the peak of the environmental Kuznets curve, while China, which is undergoing industrialization, is still on the starting side of the curve.

Industrialization and urbanization in China requires large-scale infrastructure construction and is in dire need of more projects to improve people's livelihood. China still has over 128 million people below the poverty line and over 3.87 million people live without electricity. China has to develop to alleviate poverty. During this process energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions are inevitable, but the right of development should be respected.

According to the IEA, manufacturing and construction in China in 2010 accounted for 32.3 percent of emissions per capita, much higher than the world's average level of 20.4 percent, and the US 10.9 percent, EU 14.9 percent. Meanwhile, China's family emissions are much lower than the global average. These suggest that emissions to survive and develop take a big slice in China's carbon dioxide emissions, unlike developed countries, where emissions are part of a better life.

One fact that cannot be neglected is that a large amount of emissions by the developed countries have been shifted to China. China is considered the world's factory, and it's still positioned in the lower part of the global industrial chain. China's exports are mostly those which have higher energy consumption and lower added value.

Over a quarter of China's emissions are related to products and services provided for developed countries such as the US, European countries and others.

For example, according to China's statistics bureau, about 29.4 percent of cement produced in 2011 was exported to other countries, but China bears the full blame for the emissions during the production and consumption.

The world should recognize that China's emission problem comes from the development stage we are now in. Meanwhile, China's efforts and resolution to reduce carbon emission should not be neglected.

China has set an emissions target for 2020. Despite the goal of economic and social development, responding to climate challenges was also listed as a key part of the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15). The government has carried out measures such as dividing the carbon reduction missions into different provinces and opening up carbon exchanges in big cities like Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai in 2011.

China has achieved significant results in carbon emission reduction. The energy consumption rose at a rate of 5.82 percent each year while supporting the annual 10 percent growth of GDP, during 1981 to 2011.

As a responsible world power, China will continue to make unremitting efforts in dealing with climate change, though we might pay a high price.

The author is director of the Research Center of Energy Environment and Green Development at the Tianjin University of Science and Technology. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn